Synchronizing Display of Multiple Animations

Abstract

Some embodiments of the invention provide a method for concurrently presenting two synchronized animations based on an input value that is received through an input interface of a device. The method defines, based on the received input, a first animation that presents a first animated object, and then uses a set of attributes of the first animation to define a second animation that presents a second animated object. The method then displays at least portions of the first and second animations concurrently. In some embodiments, the method displays the first and second animations on a display screen of the device, or on a display screen connected to the device.

1 . A method of concurrently presenting two animations, the method comprising:
 through an input interface of the device, receiving an input value;   based on the input value, defining a first set of values for displaying a first animated object during a first animation, the first set of values comprising values for a first attribute associated with the first animated object;   using a subset of the first set of values to define a second set of values for displaying a second animated object during a second animation, the second set of values comprising values for a second attribute associated with the second animated object; and   displaying overlapping first and second animations by using the first and second sets of values to display a plurality of successive presentations of the first and second animated objects, the using including identifying a time value at which the first attribute has a predetermined value and using the identified time value as a start time or end time for the second animation.   
     
     
         2 . (canceled) 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the predetermined value is a maximum value. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the predetermined value is a minimum value. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first and second attributes are position related attributes of the first and second objects during the first and second animations. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first and second attributes are motion related attributes of the first and second objects during the first and second animations. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the motion-related attributes of the first and second objects include one of a velocity of an object or an acceleration of an object. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first attribute is a motion-related attribute of the first object and the second attribute is a color attribute of the second object. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the input interface is a touch input sensor, the input value is a value derived from a touch drag operation detected by the touch input sensor, and the input value being one value in a range of three or more values. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein defining the first set of values comprises identifying, based on the input value, a graph for specifying a plurality of different values for an attribute of the first animated object over a time duration of the first animation, wherein different input values for different touch drag operations result in different identified graphs, and using the subset of the first set of values comprises:
 identifying a subset of time values during the first animation when the first object's attribute has a particular subset of values, and   defining a start time, an end time, or start and end times of the second animation based on the identified subset of time values.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 9  further comprising after receiving the touch drag operation through the touch sensor, identifying the operation as an operation that is intended to move the first object. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the touch drag operation is a two-finger touch operation that starts a zoom operation with respect to an object displayed on a display screen of the device. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the input interface is a motion sensor of the device, the input value is a value derived from a motion of the device detected by the motion sensor, and the input value being one value in a range of three or more values. 
     
     
         14 . A non-transitory machine readable medium storing a program which when executed by at least one processing unit presents two animations concurrently on a device, the program comprising sets of instructions:
 receiving an input value through an input sensor of the device;   based on the input value, defining a first animation by defining a first set of values for a first attribute that is associated with a first animated object for display during the first animation;   defining a second animation by using a subset of the first set of values to define a second set of values for a second attribute that is associated with a second animated object for display during the second animation; and   displaying overlapping first and second animations by using the first and second sets of values to display a plurality of successive presentations of the first and second animated objects, the using including identifying a time value at which the first attribute has a predetermined value and using the identified time value as a start time or end time for the second animation.   
     
     
         15 . The non-transitory machine readable medium of  claim 14 , wherein the predetermined value is a maximum value. 
     
     
         16 . The non-transitory machine readable medium of  claim 14 , wherein the predetermined value is a minimum value. 
     
     
         17 . The non-transitory machine readable medium of  claim 14 , wherein the first and second attributes are position related attributes of the first and second objects during the first and second animations. 
     
     
         18 . The non-transitory machine readable medium of  claim 14 , wherein the first attribute is a position attribute of the first object and the second attribute is a color attribute of the second object. 
     
     
         19 . A mobile device comprising:
 a display screen for displaying objects;   an input interface for receiving an input value;   a set of processing units for executing instructions;   a non-transitory machine readable medium storing a program which when executed by at least one processing unit presents two animations concurrently on the display screen, the program comprising sets of instructions:   based on the input value, defining a first animation by defining a first set of values for a first attribute that is associated with a first animated object for display during the first animation;   defining a second animation by using a subset of the first set of values to define a second set of values for a second attribute that is associated with a second animated object for display during the second animation; and   displaying overlapping first and second animations by using the first and second sets of values to display a plurality of successive presentations of the first and second animated objects, the using including identifying a time value at which the first attribute has a predetermined value and using the identified time value as a start time or end time for the second animation.   
     
     
         20 . The mobile device of  claim 19 , wherein the input interface is a touch sensor of the display screen, and the received input value is a value associated with a touch drag operation received through the touch sensor.